145+ ADHD Classroom Accommodations: A Grade-by-Grade Guide
Your child’s brain works differently – not wrongly. When teachers understand this fundamental truth about ADHD, everything changes. If you’re…
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230+ Emotional Self-Regulation Tools for Kids to Try
From the outside, emotional dysregulation can look like a huge reaction to something seemingly small (to the adult). Maybe it’s…
Understanding Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) in Children – An In-Depth Overview
What’s inside this article: An in-depth look at what Pathological Demand Avoidance is, its characteristics, common demand avoidance techniques, and…
How You’re Accidentally Teaching Your Child to Ignore Their Body Signals
What’s inside this article: How well-meaning adults accidentally teach kids to ignore their body signals, why this matters for emotional…
Why Teachers Are Ditching Behavior Charts and Token Economies and What to Do Instead
What’s inside this article: Why behavior charts, clip charts, and token economies backfire, and what actually works instead. Practical, connection-based…
Using Expressive Art to Support Regulation, Self-Discovery, Identity Expression
What’s inside this article: What expressive art actually means (it’s more than painting), why it works so well for building…
18 Effective De-Escalation Strategies For Defusing Meltdowns
What’s inside this article: An overview of the escalation cycle, how the nervous system responds during stress and what that means for your child’s behavior, and evidence-based, supportive de-escalation strategies to help you compassionately support your child during meltdowns and outbursts. Understanding Meltdowns As a parent, it’s important to know some safe, helpful de-escalation strategies…
Sharing Love This Valentine’s Day: All Neurotypes Welcome!
Sharing Love This Valentine’s Day: All Neurotypes Welcome! As a pediatric OT, my Valentine’s Day preparation is in full swing!…
The 7-Minute Dopamine Boost: How HIIT Supports Kids’ Emotional Regulation
You can support emotional regulation in your child in as little as 7 minutes per day with this fun animal themed HIIT workout for kids! Our lives are so busy that finding time for new activities can feel impossible. But 7 minutes? It’s such a short period of time that for most of us, it’s…
Picky Eating and Selective Eating: When to Seek Support
Does this ring a bell? Your child eats the same three foods every single day. Mealtimes have become a battle…
Posture Before Pencil: How Body Position Impacts Writing Success
Believe it or not, as an Occupational Therapist, I have seen many children in a variety of sitting positions for writing over the years, and each one tells a different story about what the child might need. Some are seated at the wrong height, and others are leaning over in precarious positions. The fact that…
How Dungeons & Dragons (and other TTRPG) Can Help Us Grow: An OT’s Perspective
Tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons offer far more than entertainment—they’re powerful tools for skill development that can benefit neurodivergent kids and adults alike. From building social communication and problem-solving abilities to practicing self-advocacy and emotional regulation, TTRPGs create safe, structured environments where players can grow essential life skills while having fun. This article…